1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming and binding system for producing a booklet of a document file, and in particular to an image forming and binding system for producing a booklet of a document file in which images of two pages of the document file are formed on each side of a sheet conveyed in its longitudinal direction, the sheet is folded in two at its center portion in the direction the sheet is conveyed, the folded sheet is stacked one upon another, and the stacked folded sheets are then bound at the folded side edge portions thereof.
2. Discussion of the Background
A binding technology used in producing weekly magazines is well known. After both-sided printed sheets are stacked and jogged, the stacked printed sheets are stapled at their center portions in the longitudinal directions thereof by a stapling device, the stapled sheets are folded at their stapled center portions, and then the side edges of the folded sheets opposite the stapled and folded side of the folded sheets are cut off by a cutting apparatus so as to be uniform.
When the above-described binding technology is used in producing a booklet of a document file, images of four pages of the document file are formed on each printing sheet, images of two pages being formed on each side of the sheet. Further, the images of the first page (the front cover) and the last page (the rear cover) of the document file are formed on the same side of a sheet and the images of the second page and the page before the last page of the document file are formed on the backside of that sheet. Because images of four pages of the document file are formed on one sheet, when the number of total pages of the document file is a multiple number of 4, for example 8, no blank page is produced in the booklet. However, when the number of total pages of the document file is not a multiple number of 4, for example 9 in which a multiple number of 4 (i.e., 8) is added by 1, three blank pages are produced in the booklet. When the number of total pages of the document file is, for example 10 in which a multiple number of 4 (i.e., 8) is added by 2, two blank pages are produced in the booklet.
Also, a binding apparatus connected with a copying machine is known. The binding apparatus is connected with the copying machine downstream of a sheet discharging part of the copying machine in the sheet discharging direction. Sheets each carrying an image on one or both sides thereof, discharged from the copying machine, are stacked and jogged, generally without being folded, and are then stapled at edge portions at one side thereof, at the binding apparatus.
When such a system in which a binding apparatus is connected with a copying machine is used in producing a booklet of a document file, because a folding function to fold each sheet is not generally provided in the binding apparatus, an image for one page of the document file is formed on one side or both sides of a sheet by the copying machine.
In such a system in which a binding apparatus is connected with a copying machine, generally, when a previous sheet conveyed from the copying machine to the binding apparatus is jammed at the binding apparatus, the image formation for a next sheet has been already completed at the copying machine, and thereby the next sheet is also jammed at the same position where the previous sheet has been jammed at the binding apparatus, resulting in jamming of a plurality of sheets.
The present invention has been made in view of the above-discussed and other problems and addresses the above-discussed and other problems.
Preferred embodiments of the present invention provide a novel image forming and binding system and method for producing a booklet of a document file, in which images of two pages of the document file are formed on each side of a full-size sheet (such as an A3 or B4 size sheet) conveyed in its longitudinal direction and an image of one page of the document file is formed on each side of a half-size sheet half a size of the full-size sheet (such as an A4 or B5 size sheet) conveyed in its lateral direction, and in which the full-size sheet conveyed in its longitudinal direction is folded in two at its center portion in the longitudinal direction thereof and the folded full-size sheet is stacked one upon another to be bound at its folded side edge portion and the half-size sheet conveyed in its lateral direction is conveyed without being folded to be stacked and bound while being mixed with the folded full-size sheet, so that blank pages in the booklet, which are caused when the number of total pages of the document file is not a multiple number of 4, are reduced.
The preferred embodiments of the present invention further provide a novel image forming and binding system and method that avoids jamming of a plurality of sheets from occurring at a binding apparatus of the system, thereby reducing useless image formation at an image forming apparatus of the system.
According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, an image forming and binding system for producing a booklet of a document file includes an image forming apparatus, an image formation controller and a sheet folding and binding apparatus. The image forming apparatus includes a sheet feeding device configured to feed a full-size sheet set to be conveyed in its longitudinal direction and a half-size sheet half the size of the full-size sheet and set to be conveyed in its lateral direction, and is configured to form images on both sides of the full-size sheet or the half-size sheet fed by the sheet feeding device and to discharge the sheet. The image formation controller is connected with the image forming apparatus and is configured to control the image forming apparatus to form images of the document file on both sides of the full-size sheet and the half-size sheet fed by the sheet feeding device one by one. The image formation controller controls the image forming apparatus to form images of four pages of the document file on each full-size sheet fed by the sheet feeding device such that the images of two pages of the four pages are on each side of the full-size sheet and images of two pages of the document file on each half-size sheet fed by the sheet feeding device such that the image of one page of the two pages is on each side of the half-size sheet. A sheet receiving device of the sheet folding and binding apparatus is configured to receive the sheet discharged from the image forming apparatus and to further convey the received sheet. The sheet receiving device includes a sheet size detect device configured to detect if the received sheet is the full-size sheet conveyed in its longitudinal direction or the half-size sheet conveyed in its lateral direction. A folding device of the sheet folding and binding apparatus is configured to fold the received sheet conveyed by the sheet receiving device in two at its center portion in the direction the received sheet is conveyed by the sheet receiving device, when the received sheet has been detected by the sheet size detect device to be the full-size sheet conveyed in its longitudinal direction, and to further convey the folded received sheet with the folded center portion thereof being served as the leading edge of the folded received sheet. The folding device is further configured to convey the received sheet conveyed by the sheet receiving device without folding the received sheet, when the received sheet has been detected by the sheet size detect device to be the half-size sheet conveyed in its lateral direction. A jogging device of the sheet folding and binding apparatus is configured to receive and jog the received sheet conveyed by the folding device, one after another, so as to be stacked one upon another. A binding device of the sheet folding and binding apparatus is configured to bind the stacked received sheets at their leading edge portions in the direction the received sheets have been conveyed by the folding device and to discharge the bound stacked sheets as the booklet.
In the above-described image forming and binding system, the sheet feeding device of the image forming apparatus may be configured to feed a plurality of full-size sheets different in sizes and set to be conveyed in their longitudinal directions and a plurality of half-size sheets respectively half the sizes of the plurality of full-size sheets and set to be conveyed in their lateral directions. In this case, the image formation controller is configured to designate one of the plurality of full-size sheets as the full-size sheet for forming the images of two pages of the document file on both sides thereof, and the sheet size detect device of the sheet receiving device of the sheet folding and binding apparatus is configured to detect the size of the received sheet. Further, the folding device of the sheet folding and binding apparatus includes a guiding mechanism configured to receive, guide, and stop the received sheet conveyed by the sheet receiving device at a predetermined position according to the size of the received sheet detected by the sheet size detect device, when the received sheet has been detected by the sheet size detect device to be the full-size sheet conveyed in its longitudinal direction. The folding device further includes a sheet pushing mechanism configured to push the received sheet guided and stopped by the guiding device downward at its center portion in the direction the received sheet is conveyed by the sheet receiving device, and a sheet folding/pressing device configured to pinch the received sheet at the center portion thereof pushed by the sheet pushing mechanism so that the received sheet is folded at the center portion thereof by the sheet folding/pressing device and the folded received sheet is further conveyed with the folded center portion thereof being served as the leading edge of the folded received sheet. Furthermore, the sheet pushing mechanism is configured to guide the received sheet conveyed by the sheet receiving device, when the received sheet has been detected by the sheet size detect device to be the half-size sheet conveyed in its lateral direction, so as to be further conveyed by the sheet folding/pressing device without being folded by the sheet folding/pressing device. Further, the jogging device is configured to receive and jog the received sheet conveyed by the folding device, one after another, at a predetermined position in the jogging device according to the size of the received sheet detected by the sheet size detect device, so that the received sheet is stacked one upon another at the predetermined position.
In the immediately above-described image forming and binding system, the sheet receiving device of the sheet folding and binding apparatus may include a correcting mechanism configured to correct an advancing direction of the received sheet so as to be at a right angle relative to a longitudinal direction of the sheet folding/pressing device of the folding device. The correcting mechanism may include a reference guide configured to guide the advancing direction of the received sheet to be at the right angle relative to the longitudinal direction of the sheet folding/pressing device, and a sheet shifting device configured to shift the received sheet, while conveying the received sheet, to the reference guide so that the advancing direction of the received sheet is corrected by the reference guide so as to be at the right angle relative to the longitudinal direction of the sheet folding/pressing device.
In the above-described image forming and binding systems, the jogging device of the sheet holding and binding apparatus may include a movable device configured to move to a predetermined position to jog the received sheet conveyed by the folding device one after another with respect to left and right sides thereof in the direction the received sheet has been conveyed by the folding device, and the sheet folding and binding apparatus may include a controller configured to determine if the movable device has completed its movement to the predetermined position and to generate a signal indicating that the movable device has completed its movement to the predetermined position when determined as that the movable device has completed its movement to the predetermined position. The image formation controller controls the image forming apparatus to start image formation for a next sheet after receiving from the controller of the sheet folding and binding apparatus the signal indicating that the movable device of the jogging device has completed its movement to the predetermined position.
In the above-described image forming and binding systems, the sheet folding and binding apparatus may further include a detect sensor arranged between the folding device and the jogging device to detect passage of the received sheet, and a controller configured to determine that the received sheet has been jammed and to generate a sheet jamming signal indicating that the received sheet has been jammed if detection of the passage of the received sheet by the detect sensor is not started within a predetermined period of time after a leading edge of the received sheet has been detected by the sheet size detect device of the sheet receiving device, or when the detection of the passage of the received sheet by the detect sensor has started, if the detection is not completed within a predetermined period of time after starting the detection. Further, the image formation controller may control the image forming apparatus, when controlling the image forming apparatus to perform an image forming operation after receiving from the controller of the sheet folding and binding apparatus the sheet jamming signal indicating that the received sheet has been jammed, to perform the image forming operation starting with the images of pages of the document file formed immediately before.
Further, in the above-described image forming and binding systems, the sheet folding and binding apparatus may include a controller configured to determine whether or not the folding device, the jogging device and the binding device are respective states ready for receiving a next sheet, and to generate a signal indicating that the folding device, the jogging device and the binding device are in the respective states ready for receiving the next sheet when determined as that the folding device, the jogging device and the binding device are in the respective states ready for receiving the next sheet, and a sheet jamming signal indicating that the received sheet has been jammed when determined as that the folding device, the jogging device and the binding device are not in the respective states ready for receiving the next sheet. In this case, the image formation controller controls the image forming apparatus, when the image forming apparatus is in a state ready for starting an image forming operation, to start the image forming operation upon receiving from the controller of the sheet folding and binding apparatus the signal indicating that the folding device, the jogging device and the binding device are in the respective states ready for receiving the next sheet. Further, the image formation controller may control the image forming apparatus, when controlling the image forming apparatus to perform an image forming operation after receiving from the controller of the sheet folding and binding apparatus the sheet jamming signal indicating that the received sheet has been jammed, to perform the image forming operation starting with the images of pages of the document file formed immediately before.
Furthermore, in the above-described image forming and binding systems, the image formation controller may be configured to control the image forming apparatus to form the images of the document file on the full-size sheet and the half-size sheet that are fed by the sheet feeding device one by one so as to be mixed with each other. The image formation controller may be further configured to control the image forming apparatus to form images of given two pages of the document file on each of a given number of the half-size sheets fed by the feeding device so as to be mixed with the full-size sheet.
Further, in the above-described image forming and binding systems, the image formation controller may be configured to set a direction of forming the images of two pages of the document file on both sides of each full-size sheet to be lateral and a direction of forming the image of one page of the document file on both sides of each half-size sheet to be vertical, and to set upper, bottom, left and right side margins to each half-size sheet and bottom, left and right side margins and a center margin for each full-size sheet.
Furthermore, in the above-described image forming and binding systems, the image forming controller maybe configured to control the image forming apparatus to form the images of four pages of the document file on each full-size sheet such that in order of forming the images at the image forming apparatus, an image of a fourth page of the four pages and an image of a first page of the four pages are on an upper side and an image of a second page of the four pages and an image of a third page of the four pages are on a back side of the full-size sheet, and to form the images of two pages on the half-size sheet such that in order of forming the images at the image forming apparatus an image of a first page of the two pages is on an upper side and an image of a second page of the two pages is on a back side of the half-size sheet.